


Drifting Off

by LeopardShadow



Category: One Piece
Genre: But mostly fluff, Fluff, Some sadness
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-05
Updated: 2020-11-05
Packaged: 2021-03-09 01:28:38
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 2,843
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27396484
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LeopardShadow/pseuds/LeopardShadow
Summary: 5 times Zoro helped his crewmates sleep + 1 time one of them helped him
Relationships: Mugiwara Kaizoku | Strawhat Pirates & Roronoa Zoro, Roronoa Zoro & Everyone
Comments: 11
Kudos: 88





	1. One: Robin (On Sunny, after Water 7)

Robin has had insomnia for years. It's something she's long come to accept about her life, but tonight was one of the bad nights. She had been trying to read in the aquarium bar, as that seemed to help the last few times she couldn't sleep. The soft light and relaxed shadows of the fish were always a comfort to her. She hadn't really been comprehending the words on page for a while now, and was already preparing herself for another long, exhausting night. She startled when Zoro wandered into the aquarium, looking drowsy and mildly confused. 

"Ah. Not the bathroom... G'night," he mumbled to her and let out a huge yawn, wandering back out of the room.  
She couldn't help her smile at the realization of him being lost on the ship, again. 

Robin returned to her reading for a bit, only for Zoro to wander in through a different entrance entirely. He looked baffled for a moment, his half asleep state showing more emotion than usual for him. Robin stifled another smile and pointed in the direction of the bathroom. Zoro slowly nodded his thanks and shuffled his way out.

A few minutes later Robin could hear Zoro’s grunt of triumph at finding the bathroom and she laughed quietly at the swordsman's oddities. She let out a small yawn of her own and set her book down, becoming hopeful the night wouldn’t be as long as she had originally speculated. 

Robin was asleep when Zoro wandered in again by accident. Years on the run had made her into a light sleeper, so she tensed for a moment when she felt a soft fabric cover her. She cracked an eye open and relaxed at the blurry sight of three swords and a familiar white shirt. Zoro shut the door behind himself quietly and- Robin hoped- went back to bed himself. Robin adjusted the blanket he'd left and fell easily back into a comfortable sleep.


	2. Two: Usopp and Chopper (On Merry, after Alabasta)

"I think I'm coming down with 'If we anchor on that island, I'll die' disease!" Usopp announced theatrically and clutched his stomach. When that got no reaction other than Chopper yelling for a doctor, he tried a different tactic.

“There’s gonna be monster crabs on this island, I can feel it! That and… giant lions! And scorpions! Just _look_ at it!” He waved frantically at the island to emphasize his point and Nami shrugged.

“Usopp, just look at Luffy,” She said with a head tilt in the direction of their rubber captain. Usopp followed the gesture and found Luffy bouncing on the spot very obviously excited. “You and I both know there’s no way we’re gonna convince him not to stop at this island. Danger be damned.” She patted his shoulder in sympathy, and walked away to give Luffy the routine 'don't get us into trouble' speech with a resigned sigh.

“Usopp, are all the things you’ve said about that island true?!” Chopper asked, with obvious fear in his voice. Usopp opened his mouth to reply, about to tell the reindeer of their inevitable doom when a loud snore interrupted. They both turned towards the source of the noise and two pairs of eyes found Zoro napping against the railing. Zoro had fallen asleep in the middle of Usopp’s grand fear rambles. As usual, the swordsman was completely unconcerned of any possible danger. 

Usopp turned back to Chopper, “Fear not, Chopper! I will protect this crew against any kind of monster that may reside on that island.” He walked over to Zoro. “With the help of our trusty swordsman of course.” He finished, with a dramatic gesture at the sleeping man. Chopper giggled in response, and the cute sound ended in a yawn as the reindeer rubbed an eye. Chopper made his way over to Zoro, collapsing into the snoring man’s side. Chopper seemed to agree with Zoro about nap time, if the speed in which the youngest Straw Hat fell asleep said anything. Usopp looked at them briefly, before he shrugged and claimed the spot on the other side of their green haired crewmate. 

Later, when they’d just about arrived on the island, Zoro's nap is disturbed by an elbow digging into his ribs. He looked down to find Usopp and Chopper fast asleep. With a small shrug, he adjusted the elbow jabbing into his side and went back to sleep.


	3. Three: Luffy (On Sunny, after Time-skip)

Luffy's chest hurt. Phantom pain throbbed through him in tune with his heart. The relentless pounding made it hard for him to breathe as fire and magma flashed through his mind.  
Jimbei's reminder echoed in his head then, and he consciously let the comfort of his crew's presence wash over him. Fully awake now, Luffy climbed out of bed. He was careful not to wake anyone else, and when he got on the deck his feet carried him to the front of Sunny on autopilot, seeking out his favorite spot for comfort. 

Zoro found him there, seated on Sunny's figurehead in the middle of the night. Luffy waited for him to say something, but instead he walked over and joined Luffy at the front of the ship. Somehow he seemed to know Luffy wanted the silence for now. Ever since those first days, Zoro always did have the ability to tell what Luffy needed without having to ask, especially when it mattered most. They stayed that way for a while, with the gentle lapping of the waves against Sunny a good companion to their comfortable silence. Eventually Luffy found himself drifting off, and he was about to force himself awake long enough to get back to bed. But Zoro beat him to it- the swordsman picked Luffy up and carried him easily back to the bed Luffy had left hours ago. Zoro was just about out the door again when Luffy laughed quietly.

"Thanks, Zoro." 

"No problem, captain." 

Luffy couldn't see his face but he knew his swordsman was wearing a small smile. The door to the men's cabin shut quietly and Luffy drifted off to a restful sleep, the phantom pain leaving him be for now.


	4. Four: Nami (On the two tiny boats, after Buggy)

Nami still didn't know what to think about those two, despite spending the last two days with them. She did know that she couldn’t trust them; pirates are _never_ trustworthy. So she was running on very little sleep. Quick snippets here and there were all she could afford without giving them any opportunity to betray her. She watched as Luffy wound up his arm to catch a bird only for Zoro to tackle the boy yelling about not doing that again. She really didn't know what to think of them. 

She was ready for another night of pretending to sleep, the risk not worth the night of rest. The sun had set for the night and Luffy was already fast asleep. She had also been 'asleep' the last hour. They were almost at the next island, she could last another night, she'd have to. Her train of thought was interrupted when Zoro spoke up into the quiet night. 

"You know it's my watch, right? You can sleep." 

Nami internally scoffed to herself. _As if I'd ever trust a pirate to watch my back_

Next thing she knew, the sun was out and Luffy was whining about their lack of breakfast. She gave herself a minute to wake up fully before stretching and turning to the boys.

"Good morning to everyone except the rubber monster who ate all our food," was the first thing out of her mouth. Luffy only pouted and pointed out how hungry he'd been, while Zoro echoed her good morning with a smug smile. She tried to be annoyed, at them, and at herself for falling asleep. Her life had taught her time and again to never trust pirates. In the end though, she had felt at ease enough around these pirates to actually sleep. And she really couldn't lie to herself anymore, she liked these two particular pirates.


	5. Five: Brook (On Sunny, after Time-skip)

Brook played a sorrowful song on his violin, words of sadness he spoke through notes instead of voice- an apology, for ears too far away to hear. He played quieter than usual, as to not wake anyone at the late hour. Brook was entirely focused on his music and hadn't yet noticed his audience, so he startled a bit when he turned away from the sea to find Zoro lounged across the bench behind him. Brook wasn't surprised to see the other swordsman up at such an hour, his strange sleep habits common knowledge among the Strawhats.

Zoro caught his eye and raised an eyebrow, asking a silent question. It seemed he'd noticed the change in Brook's music.

“Not to worry, I am in good health. Though I must be honest, Zoro-san. I find myself missing a friend too much to sleep.” 

Zoro hummed in response and turned fully toward Brook, and asked him if he’d like to hear about a friend of theirs who was waiting for Luffy at the biggest wall in the world. Brook laughed lightly and nodded, delighted by the offer. Once Brook was settled onto the bench next to Zoro, the younger man started the story.

Zoro tells him of their encounter with Laboon, tells him about how the whale misses Brook and his crew severely, and had never lost hope they would come back for him. He tells Brook, with a quiet laugh, that Luffy’s first reaction to the whale was to pick a fight with the beast. Zoro tells him, his voice soft in the night, about how Laboon is cared for by a strange old man with flower petals for hair, who loves Laboon deeply. Tells him with a fond smile on his face, about Luffy's promise and how much it had meant to the whale, Laboon’s obvious excitement over this new promise replacing the despair of his overdue one. There was never a drop of blame in the younger man’s voice, only assurance of the whale's current happiness. And an unspoken reminder, that Luffy would keep his promise, by extension giving Brook the same opportunity. 

Zoro told stories in a very different way than the crew’s unofficial storyteller, Brook realized as the story neared its end. While Usopp is flashy and creative with his storytelling. Zoro is quiet and to the point. He had the ability to say a lot in very few words and focused on different things in stories than Brook would have expected from the man.

Zoro yawned and Brook echoed the action, and decided it was time to try to sleep again. 

He stood and turned to face the younger man.

"Thank you for the story, Zoro-san. It was exactly what I needed." Brook gave him a slight bow, "I can tell I'll be able to sleep now, probably like the dead!" Brook laughed his characteristic laugh and Zoro cracked a smile. "Goodnight, Zoro-san." 

"Night, Brook," Zoro replied.

Brook was unsurprised to find sleep easily, and not for the first time, he dreamt of officially introducing his new crew to Laboon.


	6. Plus One: Zoro (On Sunny, after Thriller Bark)

The stupid swordsman had barely even come out of his weight room for the last few days. Sanji wasn't worried, okay, he was just annoyed. Chopper however, isn't quiet about his worry. Everytime the Moss Ball was around, Chopper was either fussing over his wounds or scolding him over training too much. 

This continued for a while until about a week out from Thriller Bark. The Idiot Swordsman never did sleep for long periods at a time, but he did tend to get plenty of naps, so no one ever worried and had long decided it was just another Zoro thing. But today he walked in for dinner with bags under his eyes and a slump in his posture. The latter was especially worrying as their swordsman usually stood tall and proud. Chopper immediately jumped out of his seat, and rushed up to the swordsman.

“Zoro! Have you been sleeping at all lately?!” the doctor reprimanded, worry obvious in his voice. 

The idiot only yawned wide and mumbled, “M’fine, Chopper. Stop worrying.”

Chopper stopped his fussing abruptly and assessed Zoro with sad eyes. 

“Please, just try to sleep tonight,” the reindeer pleaded, then whipped around and pointed at the cyborg. “Franky! Would you be willing to take Zoro’s watch tonight?” 

“Of course, little bro!” Franky flashed a bright smile and gave him a thumbs up. 

Behind Chopper, Zoro growled, “Chopper, I told you- _I am fine,_ ” There was a warning in his voice that would scare any normal adult, and the little doctor took a step back, tears starting to form in the corners of Chopper's eyes.  
Everyone in the room went quiet, full attention now on the two. Zoro was never like this towards their doctor, usually treating him almost like a younger brother. Zoro looked up from the blatant worry of their tiny doctor, to see the same worry echoed on his other crewmates face's. Zoro looked down and rubbed the back of his neck, his eyes staying trained firmly on the floor as he mumbled an apology on his way out the door. 

Everyone stared at the empty space the swordsman had left, until Nami spoke up, “What the hell was that about?”

Luffy stood up then, to follow his swordsman but Sanji beat him to the door with a plate of food in hand. "Bastard didn't eat," is the only explanation Sanji gave him, so Luffy searched his eyes and must have found what he was looking for. Luffy beamed at him and went back to the table and his food without protest. 

Sanji found Zoro easily, the muscle head was predictably holed up in the crow’s nest training again. Sanji didn't say anything, just held the plate of food out and gave him a pointed look. Zoro grunted and took the plate, dropping onto the bench with a thump. Sanji walked over to the window and as he popped it open, he lit a cigarette with practiced ease.

"Is Chopper okay?" Zoro mumbled after a while, so quiet that if Sanji hadn't been waiting, listening, he probably wouldn't have caught it. 

"He's fine, just worried about you. Everyone is. What the hell is wrong with you, asshole?" 

Zoro glared in response. "I need to get stronger."

"By training yourself to death? You have to _sleep_ , you fucking idiot!" Sanji yelled, "Or are you _trying_ to kill yourself?" 

"Of course not! You were awake, you know what happened on that island," Zoro growled, and looked away. "I need to make sure that never happens again," he finished much quieter. 

Sanji deflated at that. He put his cigarette out and collapsed onto the bench next to the idiot. 

"Look, I get it. You're an idiot, but I get it." Zoro grunted in annoyance but didn't interrupt. "What you had to do back on Thriller Bark… I agree, that needs to never happen again. But the way you've been going about getting stronger is stupid and I know you know that," Sanji looked at Zoro pointedly and the mosshead only rolled his eyes in response. 

“Of course I know that,” Zoro looked down. “But whenever I try to sleep, I get this burning feeling that I’m wasting time- time I could be using to get stronger. I don’t know how to make it stop,” Zoro said, with a small amount of desperation making its way into his voice. Sanji looked up, surprised that Zoro was actually willingly talking to him about it. 

"Dumb mosshead." Zoro grumbled a warning _oi_ but Sanji ignored it. "The crew needs you in good health and you're still injured, dumbass. You need sleep now more than ever. If not for yourself, do it for the crew," Sanji emphasized his point by lightly thumping Zoro's wounds, causing the swordsman to let out a grunt of pain. "Or I could knock you out with a foot to your face, your choice," Sanji added with a shrug, and they started fighting like usual, things feeling just a little bit more normal. 

***

Chopper sat down at the bar counter as Sanji finished lunch preparations. The rest of the Strawhats wandered in one by one, knowing lunch would be ready soon, as Chopper animatedly told Sanji how he'd found Zoro sleeping in the infirmary bed. The small doctor was hopeful that the swordsman might finally start taking care of himself. "He slept for a full four hours, Sanji! Four!" Chopper exclaimed and Sanji smiled at the reindeer’s excitement. 

Zoro wandered in next and gave Sanji a nod as he passed. When Zoro sat next to Luffy, the rubber captain poked him in the cheek and spoke to him quietly. Luffy grinned at whatever Zoro said in reply, then turned his attention to the food as Sanji loaded plates onto the table, each one full. Everyone's worry over Zoro had mostly subsided over the last couple days, with the swordsman's sleeping habits seemingly back to normal. Lunch that day ended up being wonderfully loud and happy, even for the Straw Hat crew.

**Author's Note:**

> Kudos and comments are always appreciated <3 thank you for reading!!!
> 
> Shout out to the best beta reader MostlyJustANerd.


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